The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1887-02-22
ROMANCE or 4 FIR PILLOW.
lIarper,s Ba Ear.

while ], n demure spinster well into
the ifties, looked quite old enough to
be his mother.
So the gossips at the little summer
hotel where we were boarding could
really find nothing to say, though we
often had long talks together, this
young Jack Turner and myself when
we happened to meet in The parlor or
out on the piazzas,
The special craze among our young
lady boarders Just then was the
making OF all sorts of pretty
pillows, which they filled with
pine needles or buds. Of the ira-
grant balsam iir, aud embroidered
with various appropriate notices,
such as Dream OF the woods, "I'he
pines shall whisper peace" "Gve me
OF your balm, q Fr-tree." etc, etc.
And as the picking OF these pine nee
dies and pitchy lirtips was disagreed
bile work for dainty white fingers. 1t
was quite the fashion for ali the chiv
alric young men in the house TO vol
unteer their services in this inltiatory
part oil the work Moreover, there
was not little rivalry among them
as to who should find the most fra
grant trees, Il species OF the balsam
fir denominated strawberry being
the rarest and most in demand.
| was therefore not at all surprised
when this new acquaintance OF mine,
having found out my botanic prociv-
tiles, came to me one bright morning
with an immense tow bag slung across
his shoulders, and announced his in !
tention OF picking fir in some remote |
woods on the other side the mount |
ain. Would 90 with him and show |
him the right kind OF a tree? lie had |
brought back II whole bagful oiworth- |
less stuff the day before, and all be-
cause he couldn't tell Il spruce tree
from q fir.
How could resist such n pathetic !
appeal-especially when hecluld show
me in this particular piece OF woods a
rare and beautiful species OF orchid |
that had long been trying to find?
No coud't refuse. SO Jack with |
his bag and with my basket started
off in high spirits that glorious sum
mer morning. 1t was one OF those |
rare days in July when u cool breath
from the mountains tempered the
midsummer heat andgave me an exhil. /
arating sense OF what Longfellow |
calls
the electric thrill, the touch
on lie that seems almost too much.
The three miles walk around the |
mountain seemed as nothing, and we |
soon reached our destination, the /
broad, dark belt OF woodland that |
enclosed like velvet girdle, the pict-
llresuue little lake at the foot OF the |
highest peak. Jack had proved him
self u most entertaining companion |
all the way. He reminded me OF a |
dear young nephew had lost, and,
although week before we had been |
total strangers. | was glad to notice |
that he seemed TO regard me already |
as an old and tried friend. Upon one
subject, however, he was very retcent. |
When | had found Tor him a'clump OF |
the genuine strawberry" tree and |
iokingly asked him for which OF our |
pretty young ladies he was going to |
pick the fir, he looked up quickly, and |
then, with confused look on his
frank countenance, said
"Oh, it is for no one here; it is for |
some one miles and miles away. And
do you think" he added, with an alb
stracted air quite foreign to his usual
manner, that it is really cure for
consumptionY"
Hardly cure" answered, cal |
though I've known it to give relief in
many cases OF confirmed lung trouble"
The young man sighed heavily.
"Well. 4" he replied, after a long silence,
IL am determined to try everything
for her"
OF course, my sympathies were I'M
mediately aroused. | began at once
to picture to myself the pale young
girl in her far-off home, fading away |
day by day, like some frail, sweet |
flower.
HAS she been i'll long timer" l
yentured at last to inquire.
For more than year." he answer
ed briefly, and then quickly turned
the conversation upon some other |
subject. Still, / could not help ne
ticing that a heavy burden evidently |
lay upon his mind, that, try as hard |
AS he might, he could not entirely |
shake off.
Now, / do not think am over SYM
pathetic, or have more than the or
binary amount OF curiosity usually at
tributed to woman kind, but all the
way home kept thinking OF Jacks |
little sweetheart, $50 many miles |
away" and wished he would tell me
something more about her.